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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26498020">Taking Chances</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/wickeddot24/pseuds/wickeddot24'>wickeddot24</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Teen Wolf (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>M/M, Rated T for swearing, Songfic, derek doesn't really think he deserves nice things, i love making stiles swear, i think we already know the answer to that question in the summary, kind of, post season 3B, slowburn, stiles thinks derek deserves the world</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 12:28:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,208</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26498020</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/wickeddot24/pseuds/wickeddot24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“I’m not mad at you,” he says quietly. “I’m angry at myself.”</p>
<p>Stiles turns around and looks at him. There’s a vulnerability in Derek’s eyes, one that he has never seen before. It almost makes him regret bringing this up. “Why?”</p>
<p>“It’s complicated.”</p>
<p>
  <strong>OR</strong>
</p>
<p>With the both of them stuck in an awkward situation, Derek invites Stiles on his trip to Colombia to visit Cora. They have extra time to spare and end up on the beach. Will they finally resolve things now that they’re alone, or will they only end up making things worse?</p>
<p>
  <strong>Song: Céline Dion - Taking Chances</strong>
</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>105</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Taking Chances</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>English is not my main language, sorry if there are any mistakes.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Stiles had never been out of California. Hell, he had never even left Beacon County. He never had the time or money to go anywhere, except for the lacrosse field and, very occasionally, the skating rink or the bowling alley. But he had never really <em>left.</em></p>
<p>So, when Derek had asked if he wanted to join him on his trip to Colombia, he had second thoughts. Of course, Stiles had always secretly wished for a little alone time with Derek, and Colombia sounded really nice.</p>
<p>He just wasn’t sure if he could leave his dad alone for an entire weekend. Who was going to tell him to not eat fries and burgers for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Who was going to keep him company and help him with unsolved cases? Who was going to make sure he wouldn’t go for the bottle of rum when he gets lonely at night?</p>
<p>And what about the pack? Could they really survive an entire weekend without him? Stiles did not feel like coming back home to complete chaos.</p>
<p>It was all that and, well… the kiss.</p>
<p>A few weeks had passed when Stiles finally started to feel like himself again. After being possessed by the Nogitsune and dealing with Allison’s death, he and Derek somehow grew closer. It felt as if Derek was the only one who could possibly understand what Stiles was going through, even though their situations were nothing alike.</p>
<p>They had spent many nights talking about everything that has happened, sharing things that no one else knew.</p>
<p>And one night, out of the blue, Derek had kissed Stiles. It was only a quick kiss, but it had made Stiles’ body warm and shaky. Derek had pulled away before Stiles could react properly, and he had apologized immediately, telling Stiles that he shouldn’t have done that, almost begging him to forget about it.</p>
<p>But Stiles couldn’t forget, and when Derek asked for his company for the trip, it was clear that he couldn’t either.</p>
<p>“I don’t think Cora was very happy to see me,” Stiles says, leaning back on his palms. His eyes are set on the bluest ocean he has ever seen. The sun burns right through his shirt and jeans, and he can feel sweat dripping from the back of his head. “I wish I could just jump in the water.”</p>
<p>“Why?”</p>
<p>“Because it’s hot. If I had known we were coming here, I would have --”</p>
<p>“Cora,” Derek deadpans. “I’m talking about Cora.”</p>
<p>“Oh, right. Yeah, I don’t know. I think it was the ‘what the fuck is he doing here’ that did it for me. Especially when you consider the fact that that was literally the first thing that came out of her mouth when she saw us. I could be wrong, but…”</p>
<p>Derek laughs quietly.</p>
<p>“You lied, didn’t you?” Stiles turns his head to look at him. “Cora never wanted to see me. She doesn’t give a shit about me. You just needed an excuse so I would come with you.”</p>
<p>The smile on Derek’s face grows wider, and Stiles is pretty sure his cheeks are flushed. Maybe it’s because he’s still wearing his leather jacket in this heat (which makes Stiles wonder if Derek only sweats when he’s dying), or maybe, just maybe, Derek is embarrassed.</p>
<p>“You didn’t need the excuse,” Stiles mutters. “You never do.”</p>
<p>He grimaces at his own, cheesy words. He curls his fingers in the sand, quietly yelping when the sharp edge of a broken shell cuts through his flesh.</p>
<p>“What?” Derek turns his head, immediately glancing down at his hand. He wrinkles his nose when he notices the faint smell of blood. “What did you do?”</p>
<p>“Nothing,” Stiles shrugs, digging his fingers deeper in the sand. “This view is just… painfully beautiful, you know? The sight literally hurts my eyes.”</p>
<p>Derek shakes his head and looks back at the water. “You’re so full of shit, Stiles.”</p>
<p>“Wha- I am not! You’re the one who’s full of shit, lying to me about how Cora wanted to see me, dragging my ass to fucking Colombia just so she can give me that typical Hale-scowl! If looks could kill, you would have been sitting here with my corpse. Wait, no, I take that back. I would have dropped dead in the woods when Scott and I went looking for his inhaler.”</p>
<p>“There are a lot of things that I thought would happen on this trip. You getting your feelings hurt because Cora almost kicked your ass back to Beacon Hills, isn’t one of them.”</p>
<p>Stiles laughs sarcastically and rolls his eyes. “Look, all I’m trying to say is… You never have to come up with an excuse to hang out with me. Ever. Because, you know, I like hanging out with you.”</p>
<p>Realizing that he may have said too much, he lets himself fall flat on his back. He pushes himself upward, so his head lays in the shadow of a tree.</p>
<p>“I already knew that,” Derek says.</p>
<p>“Right. Werewolf senses.” He rests his arm on his forehead, unable to resist the urge to close his eyes. It doesn’t take long before the sleepless night and the seven hour flight finally catch up to him.</p>
<p>When he opens his eyes again, he’s on his side, and there’s a leather jacket under his head that wasn’t there before. It takes him a moment to realize that he fell asleep<em>.</em> He sits up and runs a hand over his face. “Oh, fuck.”</p>
<p>“Good morning, sunshine.”</p>
<p>“Go fuck yourself. How long was I asleep?” he asks, voice still hoarse. He yawns loudly and stretches his arms far over his head.</p>
<p>Derek checks his watch. “Almost two hours. You snore.”</p>
<p>“Two hours?!” He pauses mid-stretch, panic building up inside of him. “You let me sleep for <em>two hours</em>? Derek, what the fuck. We have a plane to catch and --”</p>
<p>“Calm down. There’s still time.”</p>
<p>Stiles takes a deep breath to relax, and then his mind wanders. A mischievous grin appears on his face. “Okay, well, in that case… The last one in the water is a loser!”</p>
<p>There is a moment of staring and smiling, and then they both start to untie their shoes. Derek, of course, is the first to start running toward the water.</p>
<p>“You know you always double knot your stupid laces, you stupid, <em>stupid</em> idiot,” Stiles mumbles to himself. “That’s a great codename you just gave yourself. <em>Biggest loser of the pack. </em>God fucking damn--” He looks up from his shoes, and his eyes widen in surprise when he sees Derek staring back at him. “You just heard all of that, didn’t you?”</p>
<p>Derek lets out a laugh and jogs back. He kneels down in front of Stiles and starts to untie his other shoe.</p>
<p>“Since when do you something for my benefit?”</p>
<p>“I’ve done a lot of things for your benefit,” Derek says, looking up with a frown.</p>
<p>Stiles raises an eyebrow. “Oh, really? Like what?”</p>
<p>“Like, every time I saved your life? Isn’t that enough for you?”</p>
<p>“I don’t know,” Stiles breathes. “There are a lot of other things you could do. For my benefit.”</p>
<p>There’s a playful tone in his voice, one that Derek catches immediately. He yanks at Stiles’ ankle, pulling him closer. Their faces are mere inches apart now, and Stiles can almost taste Derek’s cologne. Eyes flicker from mouths to throats, and even to lower parts.</p>
<p>And then Stiles leans in and brushes his lips against Derek’s. It’s barely even a kiss, but it’s enough to knock Derek off balance. It’s enough to make him forget about why they were taking their shoes off in the first place. So, while he’s still processing what just happened, Stiles kicks off his shoes, jumps up and rushes toward the sea.</p>
<p>When he reaches the waterline, he turns around and pumps a fist in the air. But his smile fades quickly when he meets Derek’s glare. His brows are pulled together, his mouth set in a thin line.</p>
<p>“Derek?”</p>
<p>Derek shakes his head as he bends over to grab the towel and his shoes, and starts to walk away.</p>
<p>“Derek!”</p>
<p>*.*.*</p>
<p>The flight back to California was the second-worst thing Stiles has ever experienced. The silence between them was complete agony, and Stiles was pretty sure that every single passenger in the plane could sense the tension between them.</p>
<p>He had tried to talk to Derek, had apologized for what he did. But Derek had ignored him, and Stiles just knew he had ruined everything. He knew Derek was too busy rebuilding the walls that Stiles had spent months trying to break down. Too busy with his own thoughts to even think about forgiving him.</p>
<p>There is no going back this time. He had stepped over the line that they agreed on drawing after their first kiss. Stiles knows that this is all on him, yet he can’t help but be angry at Derek, too. He’s the one that started all this.</p>
<p>He tosses his bag on the backseat of Derek’s Cruiser and slams the door shut, much harder than he intended.</p>
<p>“Was that necessary?”</p>
<p>Stiles looks up and frowns. “Oh, now you’re talking to me?”</p>
<p>“It’s two in the morning. Can’t we do this --”</p>
<p>“No, I don’t care what time it is. We’re doing this now. We’re not taking this back to Beacon Hills. And I don’t want to start a fight or whatever, but… You kissed me, and I liked it. And then you walked away, making it perfectly clear that you didn’t want to do that ever again. And I know it’s not because I’m a terrible kisser. I’m a <em>great</em> kisser.” He turns away and leans his back against the car, crossing his arms. His eyes follow a plane that just took off.</p>
<p>“But then you take me to fucking Colombia,” he continues, “and I’m thinking ‘okay, maybe we can work this out’. And when we were joking and playing around on the beach, I thought we had. I thought we were fine. And I was okay with us being nothing more than just friends, as long as it meant having you in my life. But right now, it feels like you’re slipping away, and I just…”</p>
<p>His throat aches as he swallows, and he runs his thumb and index finger over his eyes. “I can’t have that. I’m sorry, okay? I messed up. I know I shouldn’t have done that. But you… Fuck, you are so fucking confusing. I mean, what do you want from me? What do you want me to do?”</p>
<p>There’s a long silence between them. Stiles knows he’s probably not going to get an answer. He knows he has to accept the fact that he ruined everything, that things will never be the same again. Not just for the two of them, but for the entire pack as well.</p>
<p>But then Derek clears his throat. “I’m not mad at you,” he says quietly. “I’m angry at myself.”</p>
<p>Stiles turns around and looks at him. There’s a vulnerability in Derek’s eyes, one that he has never seen before. It almost makes him regret bringing this up. “Why?”</p>
<p>“It’s complicated.”</p>
<p>“That’s okay. I won’t interrupt. I said what I had to say.”</p>
<p>Derek walks around the car until he’s next to Stiles and leans against it. “There’s so many things you don’t know about me, and yet you know me better than anyone. And that’s just… weird. You’re the first person in a very long time that I can trust. The first one that I don’t mind getting close to me, both physically and emotionally, and I still push you away. That’s what makes me so angry. Because I don’t know why I do that.”</p>
<p>“You’re scared,” Stiles blurts. He takes a step sideways so that he’s standing in front of Derek, and cups his face, forcing him to look at him. “I know you hate talking about your past, but it’s me, Derek. I’m not Kate. I’m not Jennifer. I’m not evil. I mean, I was, but… that was different. Very, very different.”</p>
<p>“I know. I know all of that.”</p>
<p>Stiles pulls Derek’s face to his chest, pulling him into a hug. “Good. And if you’re worried about everyone else… Well, fuck everyone else, okay? This is about you and me.”</p>
<p>Derek wraps his arms around Stiles’ waist. He takes a deep breath through his nose, and Stiles can feel him smiling against his chest. “You’re right.”</p>
<p>“Am I ever wrong?” Stiles chuckles. He takes a small step back so he can look at Derek’s face again. “So, what do you say? Do you want to give this a chance? Do you want to jump off the edge and just freefall into the unknown and --”</p>
<p>“Oh, shut up,” Derek whispers, and leans in to kiss him. This time, it’s not a simple, innocent peck on the lips. It’s much deeper than that, much more meaningful. This time, there’s no pulling back in fear, no apologizing, no lines that are drawn.</p>
<p>It’s just the two of them, at the end of their lifechanging trip, in the middle of the parking lot, and at the beginning of the most beautiful chance they’ll ever take.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This was written in a couple of days, and I was very distracted while proof-reading this. I don't really know what this is, I just wanted to write happy Sterek at the beach, and I failed at that because Sterek isn't really happy at the beach :(</p></blockquote></div></div>
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